Once you were young. Now, hunched in the cold, Nobody cares That you are old. Once you were beautiful. Now, in the street, No one remembers Your lips were sweet. Oh, withered old woman Of rue Fontaine, Nobody but death Will kiss you again.
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Authorship:
- by Langston Hughes (1902 - 1967), "Parisian beggar woman", appears in The Dream Keeper and Other Poems, first published 1932 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Frederick Piket (1903 - 1974), "Parisian beggar woman", published 1948 [ SATB chorus a cappella ], from Sea Charm [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2008-08-27
Line count: 12
Word count: 44